Raja

Runway diva, androgynous beauty, and self-professed supermodel, Raja Gemini stomped to victory in the third season of RuPaul’s Drag Race; beating out fierce competition from Manila Luzon to be crowned America’s Next Drag Superstar. As it happens, she’s also my favourite queen from the entire run of the show, and I was more than a little excited to discover that her UK debut would include a stopover in Glasgow.

With John committed to a wedding that same day, I’d originally planned to see Raja alongside Tom (who, in the interests of being the skinniest bitch in the room, was rocking some skeleton chic). Happily John managed to come along anyway, but – having been up since 7 the previous morning – he was about ready to pass out when the show started at 1:30 a.m. instead of the advertised 11 p.m..

Support act, Mr ‘Meth’ Mistress. Raja’s UK debut was a two-date affair, and Meth had hosted the previous event in London two days prior.

Diamond-Crowned Queen.

I first encountered Raja under his real life alter ego, Sutan Amrull, having had an enormous crush on him since his days as head make-up artist on America’s Next Top Model. (As it happens, he’s extraordinarily pretty in either gender.) I also had season 3 of RPDR ruined for me and knew, in advance, that the winning queen was Raja. It wasn’t until I started watching it, however, that I realised they were one and the same person; and while I’d still rather have been surprised by his victory, the trade-off was knowing that I had him for every episode of the season. Somehow I made peace with it.

Naturally, this particular lip-synch was performed to In My Arms by Kylie Minogue.

Tom wisely dragged us to the other side of club as the meet and greet was starting, which is just as well since the last people in line were there ’til about 3am.

He’s also, as it turns out, very good friends with Meth.

Raja told John he looked Anna Wintour. He was delighted.

Entirely too much pretty.

Highlight of my evening: making Raja laugh. I was wearing a t-shirt designed by Allison Harvard, who just so happens to be a) my all-time favourite contestant on ANTM, and b) a model that Sutan seemed particularly close to on the show. He recognised it immediately, and – in the process of pointing to it and telling me that he should tweet a photo to Allison – got his jewellery caught in the shirt. I told him, deadpan, that I’d be charging him for it. He laughed and, pointing at the stray thread, told me he should sign it instead.